Elastic snap accessory system

ABSTRACT

An accessory-fastening device for securing an ornamental item onto an article of footwear that is resistant to accidental dislodgment including a sole for contacting the ground mounted to an upper that has a snap hole and a sheet of flexible material having a top side and a bottom side affixed to the upper proximate the snap hole, a snap stud affixed to the sheet of flexible material that extends outward from the article of footwear, and a snap socket which is attached to an ornamental item to removably fasten the ornamental article to the snap stud. The sheet of flexible material that covers the snap hole provides a means of energy absorption and the dissipation of energy caused by the normal activity of a foot bend.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present disclosure relates generally to footwear and more particularly the securing of an ornamental item onto an article of children's footwear that is resistant to accidental dislodgment.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Footwear is typically designed to be stylish, comfortable, ergonomic, and/or practical. However, each pair of footwear is usually limited to its appearance at the time it is purchased. Providing an article of footwear with removable, interchangeable ornamental elements allows a wearer to modify the shoe's appearance. There are a number of ways to attach removable objects (for example snaps, Velcro, buttons, and the like). However the removable ornamental object frequently is unintentionally detached when as a person walks and the shoe bends.

One approach to remedy this problem is to increase the holding power of the snap. However, this approach suffers from a number of significant drawbacks. First, if the snap is too secure a wearer will be unable to remove the accessory, thus defeating the purpose of the removable ornamental object for a shoe in the first place. Second, the snap and accessory prevents the shoe from flexing at its natural position, which causes discomfort to the wearer, and the decorative accessory is unintentionally detached.

There are several examples in the shoe industry in which snaps are used to attach a decorative accessory to footwear. By way of example, the U.S. Pat. No. 4,712,319 to Goria discloses footwear having interchangeable safety aids. The safety aids have a flanged edge, which is snapped to a corresponding element on the shoe. Each element is described as being located on pre-existing seams created during construction of the shoe. This design feature presents a problem however, in that the stiff supporting means for the snap base unintentionally initiates ornamental decorations to dislodge as the shoe bends when a person walks while wearing the shoe.

The U.S. Pat. No. 5,586,888 to Webb discloses a shoe system for children wherein, when placed side-by-side, the left shoe and right shoe form an image allowing the child to know if the correct shoe is on the correct foot. Various designs can be placed at the toe of the shoe by replacing strips of fabric using a multiple snap system. The interchangeable strip covers the entire width of the toe and is held on with numerous snaps (not just one). However, while multiple snaps are used to fasten the fabric onto the shoe, this invention focuses on a method directed toward providing identification on the toe portions of a pair of shoes to indicate to a child which is the right shoe and which is the left shoe. It does not prevent the interchangeable decoration from dislodging off the snap(s) during normal foot bending activity.

The U.S. Pat. No. 5,673,501 to Mathews describes a shoe with a removable decorative element held in place with a snap. The male end of the snap is placed on the decorative element while the female end is sewn into the body of the shoe. The female end is stitched between the inner layer and outer layer of the shoe. However, this design suffers from the fact that the supporting fastening device on the shoe is unyielding, causing decorative accessories to inadvertently disengage from the snap during normal foot flexing activity.

Therefore, it is clear that a long felt need exists for a flexible snap shoe accessory system for securing removable ornamentation to an article of footwear that is resistant to accidental dislodgment.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

It is a general object of the present disclosure to provide a simple means of attaching decorative ornaments onto a shoe that resists accidental removal of the ornaments due to normal foot flexing activity.

It is a further object of the present disclosure to provide a means of displaying decorative ornaments on a shoe without creating an uncomfortable concentrated pressure point between a person's foot and the snap fastening device.

Yet another object of the present disclosure is to provide a means of a simple single snap system that does not take away from appearance of the footwear.

Still another object of the present disclosure is to provide a means of eliminating pressure points that snap fastening devices create when attached to articles of clothing made of non-flexible material.

Yet another object of the present disclosure is to provide a means of using snap fastening devices for securing items such as a strap, lip, flap or collar on articles that are distorted during normal day-to-day activities.

These and other objects, features and advantages of the present disclosure will become readily apparent to those having ordinary skill in the art upon a reading of the following detailed description in view of the appended claims and drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the front part of a shoe constructed according to the principles of the present disclosure.

FIG. 2 is a top view of shoe constructed according to the principles of the present disclosure.

FIG. 3 is an exploded view of shoe constructed according to the principles of the present disclosure.

FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional side view of the toe region of a shoe constructed according to the principles of the present disclosure taken generally along line 4-4 of FIG. 2 with an ornamental object above the snap.

FIG. 5 is a front cross-sectional view of a shoe constructed according to the principles of the present disclosure taken generally along line 4-4 of FIG. 2 with the ornamental object attached to the snap.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

At the outset, it should be clearly understood that like reference numerals are intended to identify the same structural elements, portions, or surfaces consistently throughout the several drawing figures, as may be further described or explained by the entire written specification of which this detailed description is an integral part. The drawings are intended to be read together with the specification and are to be construed as a portion of the entire “written description” of this disclosure as required by 35 U.S.C. §112.

For a variety of reasons, footwear is typically designed to be stylish, comfortable, ergonomic, and/or practical. However, each pair of footwear is usually limited to its appearance at the time it is purchased. The present disclosure describes an article of footwear configured to receive an ornamental attachment so that the article of footwear is not limited in its appearance and so that the ornamental attachment will not be easily dislodged during ordinary wear. Providing an article of footwear with removable, interchangeable ornamental elements allows a wearer to modify the shoe by removably attaching an ornamental item to a shoe and thus change the shoe's appearance. Adverting now to the drawings, FIGS. 1-5 are various views showing article of footwear 10, which, in a preferred embodiment, comprises of ornamental item 30 removably attached to the upper part of the shoe, in which upper 17 is fixably mounted to sole 14. Article of footwear 10 is equipped with an accessory-fastening mechanism for securing an ornamental item onto an article of footwear. The present disclosure comprises of article of footwear 10, having sole 14 for contacting the ground and upper 17 mounted on sole 14. Upper 17 is made up of an inner layer and an outer layer and has a snap hole configured so that sheet of flexible material 26 having a top side and a bottom side is affixed to upper 17 between the inner and outer layer proximate snap hole 22. Snap stud 20 is attached to the flexible sheet that extends outward from the article of footwear. Snap socket 32 is attached to the ornamental item is used as a connection point to removably fasten the ornamental article to snap stud 20.

FIG. 2 illustrates a top view of the present disclosure having an article of footwear 10 with snap stud 20 located proximate snap hole 22. Upper 17 of the shoe has snap hole 22 and sheet of flexible material 26 which covers snap hole 22 and which is positioned between an inner and outer layer of upper 17 (shown in FIG. 3). Flexible material 26 provides a base for snap stud 20. Snap stud 20 allows for attachment and display of ornamental item 30 on upper 17 of article of footwear 10. Snap stud 20 is affixed to a sheet of flexible material 26 so as to be centered in snap hole 22. Snap hole 22 is the opening in upper 17 of the shoe that receives snap stud 20. Although snap hole 22 is shown in FIG. 2 as circular in shape, it should be readily obvious to those of ordinary skill in the art that snap hole 22 may have a number of many different shapes, such as for example, square, oval, octagonal and the like. In FIG. 2 ornamental item 30 is shown disconnected from snap stud 20. Ornamental item 30 is configured with snap socket 32, which is a female receptacle compatible with snap stud 20. The ornamental item 30 of the instant disclosure is configured to accept snap stud 20 so that the ornamental items can be removably attached to the shoe. Snap stud 20 can comprise any means well known in the art to hold ornamental item 30 to a shoe, such as a clamp or a hook and loop. It should be understood that each of the embodiments of the present disclosure can be made with a variety of different ornamental attachment devices. In a preferred embodiment, upper 17 is made of leather, although any other material that will provide support for sheet of flexible material 26 or the like can also be used, such as plastic or rubber. While snap hole 22 of this disclosure may be located anywhere throughout the upper part of the shoe, a preferred location is the toe region of upper 17 so as to provide a location which affords maximum visibility to ornamental accessories attached to the footwear.

FIG. 3 illustrates an exploded view aspect of the present disclosure. In this embodiment, ornamental item 30 comprises snap socket 32, which is affixed to decorative accessory 33 with a socket fastening prong 34. Preferably socket fastening prong 34 is a prong but can be configured from any other suitable fastener. To enhance the appearance of the footwear, decorative accessory 33 may be a variety of styles such as for an example ribbons, bows, flowers and the like. Additionally, the snap and socket engageable elements could also be used for securing items such as a strap, strips, a tongue, lip, flap, collar and the like; each used to decorate the article of footwear. Snap stud 20 is affixed to sheet of flexible material 26 by means of stud fastening prong 24. Snap stud 20 is located on the topside of sheet of flexible material 26 with stud fastening prong 24 protruding through the bottom side of sheet of flexible material 26. Snap stud 20 extends outward from upper 17. Preferably stud fastening prong 24 is a prong but it can also be configured from a post or from any other suitable fastener.

In order to receive snap stud 20, the area of snap hole 22 is larger than the area of snap stud 20. Preferably, the area of snap hole 22 ranges from about 0.5 mm to about 6 mm larger than the outer diameter of snap stud 20, and more specifically from about 2 mm to about 4 mm larger than the outer diameter of snap stud 20. This discrepancy in area size provides enough distance for snap stud 20 to move freely inside of snap hole 22. The size differential allows snap stud 20 to move freely upon sheet of flexible material 26 as the user walks while wearing the shoe and thus the ornamental object more readily remains attached to the shoe. A snap stud that is directly attached to the upper of the shoe is more likely to be dislodged than a snap stud 20 that is attached to the flexible sheet disclosed herein, because the flexibility and moveability of flexible material 26 allows the base of the snap stud to flex freely inside snap hole 22 and avoid pressure applied from the natural bending of the shoe during walking. In the instant embodiment, sheet of flexible material 26 is joined between inner layer 16 and outer layer 18 (which together comprise upper 17 of the shoe) by various suitable means of connection such as for example sewed, pressed, stapled or glued and the like. Specifically, sheet of flexible material 26 is joined together between inner layer 16 and outer layer 18 by a stitched connection. Sole 14 is comprised of a resilient material, such as rubber, which is sturdy enough for contact with the ground while walking.

FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional side view of the toe region of the shoe constructed according to the principles of the present disclosure taken generally along line 4-4 of FIG. 2 with an ornamental object above the snap. Layered above inner layer 16 and below outer layer 18 of upper part of the shoe is sheet of flexible material 26. The area of sheet of flexible material 26 is larger than the area of snap hole 22 in order to extend beyond snap hole 22, preferably about 10 sq/mm beyond snap hole 22. Sheet of flexible material 26 is sufficiently large enough to cover snap hole 22 and to provide enough material to be stitched between inner layer 16 and outer layer 18.

In the disclosed embodiment, sheet of flexible material 26 is comprised of an elastic fabric. Elastic fabric may be made by combining strands of natural or synthetic rubber with strands of yarn. Specifically, the elastic fabric can be a number of different styles, such as for example braided, knitted and the like. More specifically; woven elastic fabrics are used because they possess sufficient resiliency to protect the integrity of the shoe. The woven elastic fabric provides a strong base to maintain the ornamental fasteners, yet it is flexible enough to dissipate energy created by normal foot bending activity of a shoe.

FIG. 5 is a front cross-sectional view of a shoe constructed according to the principles of the present disclosure taken generally along line 4-4 of FIG. 2 with the ornamental object attached to the snap. Snap socket 32 of ornamental item 30 is removably connected with snap stud 20. Because snap stud 20 is connected on flexible material 26 and not directly the upper part of the shoe, the ornamental item is not subject to pressure applied as a result of walking. To add a variety of decoration options, snap stud 20, stud fastening prong 24, snap socket 32 and socket fastening prong 34 can be coated with a range of metal finishes as well as a range of colors and can be constructed of a number of materials including metal, plastic, or the like. It will also be appreciated that the disclosure may be employed with any of a variety of types of footwear, including, such as for example, shoes, sandals, sneakers, boots, and the like.

Although the disclosure has been described with reference to certain preferred embodiments, it will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that modifications and variations may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the disclosure. It should be understood that applicant does not intend to be limited to the particular details described above and illustrated in the accompanying drawings. 

1. An accessory-fastening device for securing an ornamental item onto an article of footwear comprising: an article of footwear, having a sole for contacting the ground; an upper mounted on said sole having a toe region and a heel region wherein said upper has a snap hole; a sheet of flexible material having a top side and a bottom side affixed to said upper proximate said snap hole; a snap stud attached to said sheet that extends outward from said article of footwear; and a snap socket attached to said ornamental item to removably fasten said ornamental article to said snap stud.
 2. The accessory fastening device of claim 1, wherein said upper comprises an inner layer and an outer layer and wherein said sheet is affixed between said inner layer and said outer layer of said upper.
 3. The accessory fastening device of claim 1, wherein the area of said sheet is larger than the area of said snap hole and said sheet completely covers said snap hole.
 4. The accessory fastening device of claim 2, wherein said inner layer and said outer layer of said upper are made of leather.
 5. The accessory fastening device of claim 1, wherein said snap hole has a diameter greater than the outer diameter of said snap stud such that said snap stud may pass freely therethrough.
 6. The accessory fastening device of claim 1, wherein said snap hole is located proximate said toe region of said upper.
 7. The accessory fastening device of claim 1, wherein said sheet is affixed to said upper by a stitched connection.
 8. The accessory fastening device of claim 1, wherein said snap stud is attached to said sheet by means of a stud attachment prong.
 9. The accessory fastening device of claim 1, wherein said ornamental item having said snap socket is attached to a decorative accessory by means of a socket attachment prong.
 10. An accessory-fastening device for securing an ornamental item onto an article of footwear comprising: an article of footwear, having an sole for contacting the ground; an upper mounted on the sole having a toe region and a heel region wherein said upper comprises an inner layer and an outer layer; a snap hole located on said upper and passing through said inner layer and said outer layer; a sheet of flexible material having a top side and a bottom side affixed to said upper between said inner layer and said outer layer proximate said snap hole; a snap stud attached to said sheet that extends outward from said article of footwear; and a snap socket attached to said ornamental item to removably fasten said ornamental article to said snap stud.
 11. The accessory fastening device of claim 1, wherein the area of said sheet is larger than the area of said snap hole and said sheet completely covers said snap hole.
 12. The accessory fastening device of claim 2, wherein said inner layer and said outer layer of said upper are made of leather.
 13. The accessory fastening device of claim 1, wherein said snap hole has a diameter greater than the outer diameter of said snap stud such that said snap stud may pass freely therethrough.
 14. The accessory fastening device of claim 1, wherein said snap hole is located proximate said toe region of said upper.
 15. The accessory fastening device of claim 1, wherein said sheet is affixed to said upper by a stitched connection.
 16. The accessory fastening device of claim 1, wherein said snap stud is attached to said sheet by means of a stud attachment prong.
 17. The accessory fastening device of claim 1, wherein said ornamental item having said snap socket is attached to a decorative accessory by means of a socket attachment prong. 